Yes, we can argue that Alfred North Whitehead, through his process philosophy, anticipated certain elements of contemporary cosmology, even though he did not have access to modern observational data. Whitehead’s philosophical framework, particularly his concept of the universe as a process of becoming rather than a static collection of objects, resonates with contemporary cosmological ideas about an evolving, dynamic universe.
Whitehead’s emphasis on process over substance suggests a cosmos that is continuously in flux, much like the modern understanding of the universe as expanding and evolving over time, from the Big Bang to present-day structures like galaxies and stars. This idea aligns with the current view in cosmology that time and space are not fixed but are intimately connected to the material content of the universe, much as in Einstein’s theory of relativity, which Whitehead critiqued and engaged with deeply .
Additionally, Whitehead’s concept of prehension—where entities influence each other in a network of relationships—could be seen as an early philosophical parallel to contemporary ideas about the interconnectedness of all matter and energy in the universe. His holistic, organic view of the cosmos challenges the mechanistic, reductionist models that were dominant in his time, a challenge that remains relevant today as physicists and cosmologists look for unified theories that integrate gravity, quantum mechanics, and other forces.
While Whitehead did not have access to the empirical tools and data that contemporary cosmologists have, his metaphysical system foresaw a universe much more like the one we are discovering through observational data: one that is dynamic, relational, and fundamentally creative. This makes him a philosophical precursor to some of the discussions in cosmology today about the nature of time, space, and the cosmos as a whole
